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TheWall Street Journal's Walt Mossberg reviewed Sprint's (NYSE:S) HTC EVO 4G smartphone, concluding that the device offers the highest consistent downstream data speeds he has ever seen, but the speeds weren't anywhere close to the typical maximum speed Sprint claims. Moreover, the EVO's battery runs down fast. His testing revealed that the battery didn't last through a full day with WiMAX enabled.

"The carrier, in fact, is thinking of advising users to turn off the 4G network access when they don't think they need it, to save battery life. This undercuts the whole idea of faster cellular speeds," Mossberg said.

Mossberg said that Sprint claims average users will see downstream data speeds of between 3 and 6 megabits per second via WiMAX. In Baltimore, Mossberg said he averaged 3.4 Mbps downstream via WiMAX and under 1 Mbps upstream. The upstream speed is capped by Sprint at 1 Mbps.

Still, the EVO was faster than the Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) iPhone on AT&T's (NYSE:T) network, while the Verizon (NYSE:VZ) Droid Incredible averaged about 2 Mbps downstream in the same markets Mossberg tested the EVO.